Judge maintains seal on Peterson warrants

A judge ruled Thursday that he would not release any information from search warrants issued in the investigation of Laci Peterson, a missing Modesto woman police believe is a homicide victim.

"It is paramount that the investigation be thorough and unhampered, in part because of the potential penalty of death," Stanislaus County Superior Court Judge Roger M. Beauchesne wrote.

In a separate ruling announced Thursday, Beauchesne ordered some of the documents from a search warrant in the investigation of Modesto Mayor Carmen Sabatino to be unsealed in 10 days.

Beauchesne ordered the remaining documents in both cases to remain sealed for 90 days.

In both rulings, Beauchesne invited the Court of Appeal to address the "important legals issues" raised by the cases.

The rulings came after The Bee asked the court to open search warrants in both investigations, contending they were improperly sealed.
Beauchesne ruled last week that judges acted improperly when they secretly sealed the documents at the request of law enforcement officials.